The Making of a Man Of
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~lE~ Tll1llRITNCG 0 0 0 T(u) illCO) ~1rco) IB3&lFITll§li §IEOOll~ &IR1lf Volume 61, No.7 130 Gerrard Street East, June 17, 1982 Whole Number 2594 The Making of WELCOME a Man of God Bv REV. NORMAN STREET "So he (Elijah) departed thence, and found Elisha, the son of Shaphat, who was plowing with twelve yoke of oxen before him, and he with the twelfth: ~md Elijah passed by him, and cast his mantle upon him" (I Kings 19: 19). Elisha lived in evil times. A people who knew the true and living God, Jehovah, were worshipping false gods. Judgment had come upon the land - judgment by the word of Elijah the prophet, "there shall not be dew nor rain these years, but according to my word" (I Kings 17: 1). Three terrible years of drought slowly passed. Then one day, came startling news. Elijall had chal . ./ . lenged the prophets of Baal to a showdown! "Call ye on the name of your gods, ,md 1 wiJI call on the We are happy to welcome to name of the Lord: and the god that answereth by fire, let Him be God." The prophets of Baal cried Toronto Baptist Seminary from moming until evening but "there was neither President-Elect voice, nor any to answer." Then Elijah repaired the Rev. Norman Street altar of the Lord that was broken down, put the wood of Flint, Michigan in order, laid the bullock on the wood, and then ordered that all be drenched with water. When he had prayed simply and quietly, "the fire of the Lord After this, came the long withheld rains. The fell, and consumed the. burnt sacrifice, and the wood, drought was over and famlers were busy on the land - and the stones, and the dust" and licked up the water among them Elisha, plowing his father's fields. We that was in the trench. And when all the people saw may picture him deep in thought as he goes up and it, they fell on their faces: and they said, The Lord, down the furrows and reviews the great contest on He is the God," Mount Carmel and remembers Elijah's ringing chal- lel1ge: If the Lord be God, follow Him! How· startled he must have been to see someone sh'icling acwss the field, heading straight for him; and as the figme drew nearer, he recognized that it was none other than the prophet Elijah. Passing by the other servants, Elijah came to Elisha and in one swift action, removed his cloak and cast it over the shoulders of Elisha. Did DR. T.T. SHIELDS-FOUNDER & FIRST EDITOR 11922-1955) Elisha understand this symbolic act? \Ve read, "Then DR. H.C. SLADE-I1955-1974) DR. E.T. GURR 11975-1981) he arose, and went after Elijah, and ministered unto Published bi·weekly on Thursday for the propagation of the him" (I Kings 19:21). Thus began some eight ye,us of Evangelical principles of the Protestant Reformation and in h'aining for the prophetic minisb'Y, under the man of defence of the faith once delivered to the Saints. $4.00 Per Year. Postpaid to any address. 20e Per Single Copy God. On that day Elisha made A DECISION WHICH Sterling Countries £1.7 (2 years £3) payable to Canadian Imperial LED TO DISCIPLESHIP. Bank of Commerce, 55 Bishopsgate. London, ECN 3NN England. For some time now, the whole purpose of "I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ" - Romans 1-16 evangelism seems to have been to get people to make EDITORS: Dr. J. R. Boyd; Olive Clark, Ph.D. a decision. I wonder if the great emphasis on decision MANAGING EDITOR: Rev. W. P. Bauman, B.A., M.Div. making has obscmed the fact that the Lord Jesus CONTRIBUTING EDITORS: Rev. George B. Fletcher, D.O. calls us not only to believe on Him but also to follow Rev. J. F. Holliday, D.O. Him and be trained for His work'? There have been Registered Cable Address: JariNitsem, Canada too many "decisions" which never Jed to discipleship. 130 Gerrard Street East, Toronto - Canada M5A 3T4 Are you quite content to sit in the stands as Telephone (416) 925·3263 a spectator, or are you involved in the arena of struggle Second class mail registration number 1465 and conflict for the church of Jesus and the Gospel'? In Elijah's day brave men were needed to stand up and speak out and suffer for the Lord God - [(}I' Elijah's mantle which fell from him as he ascended, His name, His truth, His cause. And surely no less Elisha smote the waters of Jordan, crying, Where is today, courageous young men and women are needed the Lord God of Elijah? And the waters parted as in the work of Christ. \ViIl you respond to the call, when Elijah had smitten them with his mantle so that as Elisha did? "they two went over on dry ground." \Vith this, we read: "And when the sons of the prophets which were One day, Elijah said to Elisha, 'Tarry here, I to view at Jericho saw him, they said, The spirit of pray thee; for the Lord hath sent me to Bethel, and Elijah doth rest on Elisha." Elisha said unto him, As the Lord liveth, and as thy soul liveth, I will not leave thee. So they went down Surely all of this would remind us of the dis to Bethel." "Vhen Elijah s,1id that the Lord had sent ciples who' wailed for the enduement of power from him also to Jericho, and from there to Jordan, Elisha on high at the word of their ascending Lord (Luke repeated the same words: I will not leave thee. In 24:49): "Ye shall receive power after the Holy Ghost this we see A PUHPOSE WHICH LED TO PHOGHESS. is come upon you: and ye shall be witnesses unto ",-Ie . unto the uttermost part of the earth" (Acts Elisha was tested, but he would not be turned 1:8). Such was the promise of the risen Christ to His aside, he would not quit. He would follow the path disciples and the Book of Acts records its abundant of discipleship to the end. Are you not troubled about fulfillment in their lives. "Ve read, "Now when they the many who claim Jesus Christ as their Savour, saw the boldness of Peter and John and perceived tkit yet show so little purpose and progress in spiritual they were ignorant men, they mcuvelled; and they took things? They seem never to have had a continuous knowledge of them, that they had been with Jesus." walk with the Lord. The Christian God uses is the As in the case of Elisha, the mantle of their Master one who has a firm purpose. Elisha said: I will not had fallen upon them. "And with great power gave leave thee, and we read, "they two went on." the apostles witness of the resulTection of the Lord Jesus: and great grace was upon them all" (Acts 4:33). Viewed typically, the places they stopped on their journey speak of identification with Christ in Elisha rent his own gcmnents and put on the robe His death and resuITection. Gilgal - renunciation of of Elijah; so we are to put off all that belongs to the flesh; Bethel - reality in consecration; Jericho - our former way of life, and put on Christ (Ephesians the decisive issue; and J orrlan - dying to live again. 4:20-24; Colossians 3:8-14; Homans 13:14). Elisha's resolve to stay close to Elijah speaks "If thou see me when I am taken from thee, to us also of A FELLOWSHIP WHICH LED TO it shall be so unto thee; but if not, it shall not be POWER. Just before Elijah was carried by a whirl so." May this parting word of Elijah to his disciple wind into heaven, he as\:ed Elisha to make a parting remind us that the secret of the Spirit's filling and request. And Elisha said, I pray thee, let a double empowering lies in fellowship with our ascended, en portion of thy spirit be upon me. Then, taking up throned Prophet, Priest and King. Z (98) The Gospel Witness, June 17, 1982 Seminary Students and JARVIS STREET BAPTIST CHURCH by ]. R. Boyd Looking back over nearly fifty years to the see the roles filled by members of the faculty III time I spent in Toronto Baptist Semimuy, I thank church visitation, in open-air services, in home Bible God especially for the unique and lasting benefits Shldies, in the Family Bible School programme, arid derived from the close connection I had as a shldent church services. Shldents should see the church choir, with Jarvis SO'eet Baptist Church. During the forty the Bible School homes, the children's Bible Clubs, five yems I spent as a pastor in Sudbmy and Northern the chances to work as soul-wllming supplements to Ontario, we had shldents almost every season for the pastor's preaching and even the chmch's busllless SlUmner h'aining, and they all bore w{hless also to meetlllgs, as areas of the whole leaming process and gratihlde they felt for the practical value of being places where they may serve while learning to serve tied to an active church, as well as to an educational better III days to some. The anticipated comlllg of instihltion. Nothing I can think of could have equalled Rev. Norman Street as pastor mld President of the the experience of being directly involved with this Seminary will bring a wealth of experience from which active church's Family Sunday School, in this densely all who want to draw can benefit.